A Cruel Summer: Gone in a Dream
by Tony0423
Summary: Following the events of the season 2 finale, Miguel wakes up at the beginning of the summer. With the knowledge of the future, Miguel attempts to right his wrongs. Time travel/Dream AU. Season 2 spoilers within.
1. The Finale

**So spoilers for season 2 ahead, though in all honesty its really just a play by play of the S2E10.**

* * *

"Tory, enough!" I shout out, trying to get the girls from fighting. To my utter astonishment, Tory pushes me out of the way and kicks me to the ground. We lock eyes for a moment and I can see the pain plastered on her face. It was then that her words ran through my head.

_"The World shows no mercy, so why should we? Some people have it good, but the rest of us have to fight for every inch of what's ours... Not just to score a point. For everything."_

She was fighting for every inch, and I had taken advantage of that. If only I'd gotten to talk with her before this all happened.

"Sam!"

I was snapped back to reality at the voice of Robby Keene. He'd gotten away from the others and was bounding up the stairs. I can't let him get in the way again!

As he was coming up to the landing, I swept my foot towards him, knocking him down. I have to keep him away from Tory!

I rush him as the girls bring their fight to a lower landing, better to get him out of the equation so that I can deal with the girls.

I send two kicks to his legs and midsection, trying to get him off balance before I lean back to avoid a kick aimed at my head. He throws two punches at me, neither getting to their intended target.

_"What does a Corba do?"_

_Slither._

I weave through his defense and send a roundhouse to his stomach again. He catches it and sends an elbow into my leg and then my face.

_Shit!_

As I'm backing up and thinking of ways to finish this he speaks up again.

"That's for taking advantage of Sam!"

_Who does this prick-_

"I would _never._"

"Then why did it happen?!"

To think he'd even suggest such a thing! Before I know it we're exchanging blows again, I hear Sam scream in the background. I manage to knock him to the ground and knee him in his ribs twice. He's not getting away this time. I get up and kick Robby over to the railing. He starts to get up but lays back down and dodges to kick I aimed at his head. As he's getting back up I can't help but mock him.

"She doesn't love you, she loves _me_!"

This sets Robby off, making him swings his leg at my own. He manages to get me with his second kick but I grab a hold of the third. He uses the railing to his advantage as he drives home another kick sending me to the wall. I bounce back right into his fists as he starts to aim at my stomach and then my face. I blocked one of his punches by bringing my arm up but that was quickly met with a kick to my left leg, bringing me down to my knee.

I didn't have any time to think, Robby was beyond livid. I leaned back to avoid a kick aimed at my ribs, Robby continuing to follow me with a backfist barely missing my nose. Luckily this left him open for me to kick him away, allowing me some time and letting me get my bearings. He comes at me with a simple straight punch. Having sparred with Hawk so many times, it's basically become routine for what happens next.

I knock him off balance by rotating with the punch and hook my arm under his extension, following quickly with my leg sweeping behind his own so I can throw him to the ground with a shoulder throw. Using this to my advantage I flip him over and pull his arm towards me, holding it in place while also holding down his shoulder, increasing the pain and not allowing for him to get out of the grip. If I wanted to, I could easily break his arm or at least pop his shoulder out of its socket.

Just as I was about to put Robby out of the fight a voice hits me. Sensei Lawrence's voice.

_"I wasn't taught the difference between mercy and honor, and I paid the price for it. If I'm extra hard on you, it's only because you have the potential to be better than I ever was... You want that, don't you?"_

I hear the yelling and screaming from the other kids who are watching the fight. I look to Robby, who's squirming under my grip.

_The difference between mercy and honor._

I let go of Robby's arm. Taking a breath I swallow before I say my next two words.

"I'm Sorry."

Next thing I know, Robby elbows me on the side of my head, hooks my leg in his as he's getting up from the floor, and with a powerful kick to my stomach I'm looking up at the ceiling. I notice the railing slowly getting further and further away, my arms reaching for something to stop me.

The last thing I hear is a scream.

"Miguel!"

* * *

I woke up with start. I looked around my room quickly as I sat up, touching my face to feel for any bruises or pain. I check my phone to see what time it was but almost dropped it in shock.

_May 20th_

The day after the tournament...

* * *

**I don't think I'll be continuing this story, it's just an idea I had in mind for a little over a week.**

**Byeeee**


	2. Back to the Start

**hubbara**

* * *

Throwing off the covers, Miguel quickly threw on the closest clothes that he could and practically raced out the door. He passed by his Grandmother, who was at the stove making breakfast. He was out the door before she could say anything.

"A lo menos puedes saludar me." (At least you could have said hello to me) She said to the empty room, looking at the door that Miguel had left open.

Quickly crossing the courtyard, Miguel raised his hand to knock on Sensei Lawrence's door before stopping.

_'How the hell am I supposed to explain all this without sounding bat-shit_ crazy?' Miggy thought to himself before he knocked on the door anyway. Best to just be blunt about it. Winging it was kinda his thing anyway.

When Miggy didn't get a response, he knocked again, and a third time before texting his Sensei. It was 8:15 am.

_Yaya wanted to know if you'd like to come over for breakfast. I tried your door but you weren't answering and I can't find my keys._

He typed out, adding in little white lies so as to not seem suspicious.

_No dice kid. Already ate._

Miguel looked at his phone as the message came back a few minutes later. Sighing in defeat, he tried to remember how the day had gone by last time around but found himself busy doing chores all day with his Yaya. Leave it to Hispanics to use their weekends doing chores.

* * *

School this time around had gone almost to the letter compared to last time. This made it easy for Miguel to think both about how each day was to progress and about the imminent future. Having girl trouble wasn't exactly something he could say he had as of this moment, but he knew that come a few days down the line, Tory would kick her way back into his life. And with her came Sensei Kreese.

Miguel had thought about the best course of action to ensure that the man who had corrupted the new Cobra Kai be taken out at the soonest possible opportunity. Deciding to let nature take its course, for now, Miguel was on his way to the dojo with Hawk, noting how different Hawk was compared to the person he had become by the start of the next school year.

"Alright. So I get my license next week. My mom's gonna give me her Sentra. I'm thinking about putting a blue racing stripe down the middle, hood to tail." Hawk told Miggy, all the while making motions with his hands. This time around Miguel made sure to secure his scooter so as to not forget about it and have it stolen again, Hawk following suit.

"Subtle, I like it," Miguel said, latching the lock onto the cord. They then started walking towards the entrance, seeing a bunch of kids crowded around, seemingly wanting to go in but waiting for something. "Look's like we got some new students."

"Fresh Fish," Hawk commented with a sinister grin. "check this out." Miguel placed his hand on Eli's shoulder before looking him straight in the eye. Knowing that half the kids present would eventually turn to Miyagi-Do, Miguel wanted to cool the rising temperatures before the flame was even lit.

"Don't." Hawk got the message, judging correctly how serious Miguel was and toned down his arrogance just enough to not seem like a complete dick.

"Hey, Mouth-breathers, out of the way." To be fair, Hawk did hold back this time. Chris and Mitch, getting the door just like last time. To his credit, however, Hawk didn't cause the rookies to flinch this time, simply stating how they had a long road ahead.

"What the hell happened here?" Hawk questioned while looking at the damages to the dojo. Miguel kept quiet, knowing just what had transpired. Aisha was stretching a bit when the two had come in and answered the question.

"Looks like Sensei threw a party. Must've been one hell of a party though."

"Especially if fire got involved." Hawk agreed, starting towards the locker room after Miguel. The two quickly changed into their Gi, knowing the lesson would start soon.

When they exited the locker room, Sensei was already done kicking the newcomers out, calling for everyone to fall in.

"Must've been a rager, Sensei," Hawk said proudly, again Miguel stayed silent. He knew whether or not he added in his own words foolishly like last time, the punishment would be the same.

"Yeah, I was raging. Raging at the fact that my students are a bunch of pussies." He looked between the two before calling them out to the front.

Much like last time, Miguel and Hawk were asked the same questions, and much like last time, Johnny asked Aisha which Cobra she would rather be. At the end of it all, Johnny made Hawk and Miguel do 50 push-ups on their knuckles.

This was the moment Miguel was waiting for. He knew he had to play it cool, recite the words he had used last time, and then get to the point where he would drop the bomb on his Sensei.

"Why take pity on Robby Keene?"

Miguel knew why. Robby was Johnny's son. While Miguel would be happy to pummel the bastard into a bloody pulp, he also had too much respect for his Sensei to cause the man he regarded as his father figure that sort of grief.

"Look..." Johnny had gotten out of his seat and walked around to stand in front of Miguel. "I wasn't taught the difference between mercy and honor, and I paid the price for it. If I'm extra hard on you, it's only because you have the potential to be better than I ever was... You want that, don't you?"

A ghost of a smile reached Miguel's face before he bowed his head a bit. "Yes, Sensei."

"Alright," Johnny's face then gave his signature little smirk. He cocked his head towards the main room in the dojo, "Then stop whining like a little bitch and go out there and finish your drills." This made Miguel smirk in a similar manner before he turned to close the door.

"Actually, Sensei... There's something else I want to talk about."

Sensing the seriousness in Miguel's tone, Johnny made his way back towards his chair, stopping to grab a banquet on the way.

"What, did you bang a hot chick after winning and get her pregnant?" Johnny cracked a smile, Miguel sitting down on a spare chair.

"What? No! Sensei, this is serious. We've- _I've_ been through this before! I had a crazy dream where this entire summer had gone by. Your Sensei had come back to help run the dojo, Your friend Tommy died, I started dating this new girl in the Dojo named Tory, She and Sam went at it, You and LaRusso became friends again, Hawk and Moon broke up, Moon throws this huge party - the cops show up, We went to Coyote Creek, Sam got drunk and kissed me at the party, We got back to school and Tory called out Sam over the loudspeaker and this whole rumble happened - I think I _died_! I-I-I-"

"Whoa, Diaz, slow down there!" Johnny cut the kid off before he could hurt himself. Miguel looked up from his trembling hands to stare into Johnny's eyes and at that moment Johnny knew Miguel wasn't playing around. After a few tense moments, Johnny replayed what Miguel had just told him.

He hadn't told anyone about Kreese, he hadn't spoken to Tommy or any of the guys since he started running the Dojo full time, and he'd never mentioned Coyote Creek to any of his students, knowing just how horrible the exercise could get and how quickly it could escalate without proper discipline.

To say Miguel had Jonny's attention would be an understatement.

* * *

A knock was heard on the office door a short time later.

"Sensei? We've finished our drills. We even did a few more since it looked like you and Miguel were having a serious conversation." Aisha stood behind the door, waiting for any sign of life from the other side.

"Thank you, Miss Robinson. We'll be out shortly." Johnny's voice came from inside the office. He looked at Miguel for a few more minutes before he began to get up. Miguel got up with him, starting for the door. Johnny placed a hand on Miggy's shoulder, gaze leveling with his student.

"Not a word about this to anyone else. Do you understand, Mr. Diaz?"

A silent nod came from Miguel before the two exited the office. Turns out this would indeed be a cruel summer, but not as cruel as the one Miguel had just described.


	3. Remembrance

**Why do you people enjoy these?**

* * *

Johnny had a lot to think about. From what he'd heard from Miguel, allowing Kreese to take over for the month had been a bad idea. Simply allowing Kreese back into the dojo had been the worst mistake he could have imagined.

Sure the old dog could have taught the kids a thing or two, maybe even having two sensei run the dojo would better benefit the kids. These were the only reasons Johnny had been even considering letting the bastard into his dojo. But after hearing the full story from Miguel, there couldn't be a worse choice.

Miguel had gone on and on about how Kreese had slowly woven his grubby hands into the minds of the students, declared war between Cobra Kai and LaRusso's stupid free dojo that would be opening in a few weeks - no doubt taking students with him, even going as far as making Johnny himself become the sensei he never wanted to be. Harsher, more demanding, and an overall jackass.

Or at least that was at the beginning of the summer.

Miguel has reassured him that after the students had become accustomed to the new teachings, and Kreese had become less demanding, the workload hadn't gotten much harder, only less forgiving.

"You never changed though, Sensei." Miguel would say with a smile on his face, a faraway look in his eyes. "You would always want what was best for us. For me. Hawk was a bit more influenced by Kreese. He turned into what you never wanted us to be." Johnny didn't like the steel in Miguel's eyes when he said that. There was the makings of a petty revenge story that would span the rest of his life... or at least 30 years before flaring up again when Miguel was a loser nobody who opened up his own dojo and Hawk was a stupid car salesman with a stupid auto company, and had a stupid shitty commercial that played every 5 minutes whenever Miguel was trying to peacefully watch some damned TV, only to have Miguel's son be taken under Hawk's wing - probably literally - and be trained in Karate even after the kid had been offered countless times when he was younger and -

Fuck, Johnny needed a banquet.

* * *

Miguel sat in his last class for the year. Sure he could have skipped class, but he didn't know what consequences that might have on anything that happened during the summer. Or would happen in this case.

As he sat there, Miggy was roughing out the edges on a workout plan that he would run by Sensei. He needed to stay on top of both the class and of his own. While Miguel may not have agreed with Kreese's teachings he couldn't deny the boost in physical strength his body had taken. Thoughts of John Kreese soon turned to thoughts of Tory. Their first meeting would be soon and Miguel would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to seeing his girlfriend again.

Which brought him to his current situation.

Despite what you may believe, Miggy still hadn't made up his mind about the whole "girl trouble" situation. While, yes, he had made time to think about that, he still wasn't sure whether or not he should go back to Samantha. And as he approached meeting Tory, his deadline on an easier choice was coming to a close. Once Tory was back in his life, it'd be hell once more.

A light shoulder shove snapped Miguel back to reality, Demitri stood over his friend with an impatient look in his eyes.

"Well? Aren't we going to go find the gang and plan out our summer? I was planning on going to Comicon with Eli but _Hawk_ doesn't like 'nerd shit' apparently." Demitri rolled his eyes, a scoff following soon after.

"This whole hawk thing has been getting to his head. It's honestly concerning and it's starting to get annoying. Oh but excuse me, mention this to _Hawk_ and expect some sort of insult or a fist to the face." Miguel found it amusing just how right Demitri was. The emphasis and mocking whenever Mitri used 'hawk' bringing an even bigger smile to Miggy's face. While the two had been close at the start of their friendship, seeing as how all three were "losers", Demitri hadn't been around too much this summer. Placing an arm around his buddy's shoulders, Miguel steered Mitri out of the classroom and towards their lockers.

"Don't you worry, my friend. We'll come up with something. Maybe even hang at the beach. Get a few smokin' hot babes." A nudge to the sides and a few emphasized winks finally broke Demitri's stern face, a little smile forming on the nerd's face.

"Smoking hot babes? Well, count me in."

* * *

"You know they say trouble in the valley doesn't start until a newcomer enters. You wouldn't suppose this would be such a case?" A teen asked leaning back in his chair. He spoke to an empty room staring at an hourglass, watching as each individual grain of sand fell towards the bottom. A crack smaller than an eyelash could be seen right in the cross-section between the two hemispheres causing a frown to form on the teen's face.

"Hmm. Strange. Seems there was a defect in the process. Would it be too much of a strain to send someone in to fix it?"

* * *

Tory couldn't stop thinking about him. Miguel Diaz. Winner of the All-Valley Under-18 tournament. The way he moved in the ring. The way his eyes lit up with a cold-hearted fire. Leader of the Quiver of Cobra. King Cobra of Cobra Kai. When her 'friend' had dragged her in to watch the dumb tournament, Tory hadn't cared much about Karate. She simply saw it as people trained it: A watered-down sport that was more about scoring points and less about actually learning to fight.

Having grown up on the streets, fending for herself and her little brother, Tory saw little value in learning useless forms and Kata that you'd never use exactly as taught. But when she saw the ruthlessness that Cobra Kai had brought to the stage, Tory knew she just _had_ to try this place out. She watched as the cobras took on their opponents as if their lived depended on it. She looked on in awe as even the smallest of the bunch, a scrawny kid with sticks for arms and huge glasses on his face, fought to earn his spot in the top 16, beating out even tougher and more experienced kids - all because he didn't treat this match as a spar. All because they underestimated him. To say Tory was impressed would be an understatement.

But then she laid her eyes on _him_.

He who stood the tallest out of his group. Chin bent slightly upward, a cold calculating look in his eyes while the rest of his body was relaxed. The looks of approval and pride he wore when his teammates scored, and the way he would cheer for them even when they were at a giant disadvantage. Tory was in too deep before she even had a chance to realize what she was getting into. Eyes trailing after the top Cobra throughout the rest of the tournament, Tory was among those who cheered the loudest when Miguel beat that Reid kid 3-1. All the flips and fancy acrobatics weren't much help against a solid defense and a merciless lethal offense.

But every time Miguel won, he would always look to a certain section of the bleachers. At first, Tory thought he was looking for his mom or a family member who had come to watch but the look he would send in that direction somewhat diminished that thought process. That look was the look her mom used to wear at all those places she used to work at. The look that she would see on her brothers face from time to time. Miguel was searching for approval.

Quickly excusing herself, Tory walked along the gym's borders trying to see just who Miguel was constantly looking at. She saw multiple girls, most of them either smiling or having a good time. There were a few with an annoyed expression, probably heated over the loss of the final Yoshi-Kai student. But there was one girl who stood out among the bleachers.

She sat right at the front, right next to that Karate-gimmick-using car salesman who she would see on the TV, Daniel LaRusso. She wore the hardest glare as she stared at Miguel, rolling her eyes every time she saw him looking in her direction. It annoyed Tory. Who was this bitch and why was she so against Miguel winning? Something must have happened between those two, for sure.

Tory was broken out of her anger-fueled trance when the gym burst into more cheers. Robby Keene had also made it to the semi-finals.

When the other two semi-finalists were decided, Tory frowned when she saw the final girl be eliminated. Aisha - or whatever her name was - was a good fighter. She brought the former champ to a 2-2 stalemate and only lost because Stone had swept her legs, using her weight against her. But there were still two Cobra left. Hawk and Miguel.

Tory noted the girl from before had rushed after Aisha, maybe they were friends? It didn't really matter. Tory's attention was brought back to center stage when Xander Stone had taken the mic and started talking about fighting against hatred of whatever.

Tory smiled broadly to herself as she remembered thinking to herself _'God, I hope Miguel kicks this pansy bitch in the face.'_


	4. Progression

**I own nothing... not even the computer I'm typing these chapters on.**

* * *

Social Media is the end all be all of this generation. In a way, the whole reason the world functions today was because of the internet. Its importance is basically what fuels this earth. So you tell me how in the hell John Lawrence, a 51-year-old man, survived 20+ years on a burner phone and little to no connection to the internet whatsoever, I mean, Johnny knew what the internet was. Duh. He wasn't a complete idiot. But he wasn't exactly a nerd either. He wouldn't rely on it like a bunch of pansy bitches who only use it to read or be even nerdier-er.

Just the thought of being a nerd caused a scowl to form on Sensei's face. He took a swig from his banquet, emptying the bottle, and threw it in the trash. Starting now, he'd be a better man. A healthier one. And then he flipped over the slices of bologna he had frying in his pan. He licked his lips just thinking of how good they would taste with a couple of slices of bread and some ketchup. Add a slim jim to the middle and you've got yourself a five-star meal.

Maybe being a better, healthier man could wait until tomorrow.

* * *

Miguel, on the other hand, was deep in thought as he rode towards the dojo for the day. He had decided earlier on that he would try to reconcile with Sam this time around in order to, hopefully, have things go a bit easier than last time. Turning the final corner, Miguel was greeted with the sight of the usual regulars all standing around the entrance waiting for Johnny to arrive. Among the few was Aisha, who was talking to Bert. The little dude had a huge smirk on his face while Aisha looked like she would floor him right then and there.

A smile grew on Miggy's face as he thought of how much the little dude had grown since starting at Cobra Kai. He could now go toe to toe with Aisha since he was a lot smaller and faster than most of the kids here, yet Bert couldn't land a single hit on either Hawk or Miguel. Quickly getting behind the larger of the two, Miguel snuck his hand into Aisha's bag, finding her phone. He slipped it into his pocket before interrupting the bout before Bert could counter.

"You guys ready for today's lesson? I was talking with Sensei about it, we might be going over headbutting soon." Bert visibly perked up at that, a chance to learn something new, especially something as kick-ass as headbutting, was definitely up his alley. Aisha, on the other hand, just smirked at the little dweeb in front of her. She already knew who was the first person she'd practice on.

"Sounds like fun. You should really watch out for Hawk, though. He'll probably put a dent in both your skulls with how agro he's been." Miguel could only laugh, personally knowing just how hard Eli could headbutt. It wasn't his favorite method to use, but whenever Miguel managed to cut off Hawk's arms and legs, there was always that one dagger in Hawk's arsenal.

A faint pain pulsed in Miguel's nose at that moment. The memory of blood spilling everywhere still fresh in his mind. Hawk really got him good with that one.

Once Johnny arrived, revving his engine as per usual, he unlocked the door and let the kids flood in. Today was the day he'd be getting new students, hopefully, and he wanted to make a good first impression. Suiting up in his fully black gi, he looked himself one more time in the mirror, checked for any stubble or hairs he might have missed, and proceeded to his desk to get all the papers the new recruits might need.

Miguel, on the other hand, was busy gaining the courage to call a certain ex. He was planning out what to say and eventually just threw caution to the wind and pressed the call button. After a few rings, Sam answered in the same way she did last time.

"Hey, about time I heard from you. Did you miss me?" She sounded so happy.

"A _lot_. Please- don't hang up. Aisha doesn't know I'm using her phone." Miguel managed to choke out. Why was this so hard? He'd done it before.

Just like last time, however, Sam's voice went icy after hearing his own. "What do you want?"

Taking a moment to compose himself, Miguel spoke out the words he thought were best.

"Look, Sam. I _know_ I made a mistake- A huge one, and I know things won't go back to the way they were before. Not without a lot of awkwardness and- and- and work and..." He took a deep breath to calm himself.

"All I'm asking is that you give me a chance. Just a passing 'hi', or even a nod. Something. Something that we can use to rebuild a broken bridge. If I'm being honest... I can't stop thinking about you. About us. I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry, and for you to listen. Even if it was just for a couple of seconds."

Sam had stayed silent on the other side. Miguel was beginning to think she had hung up, even checking if the call was still going before she sighed.

"It's not that simple, Miguel. Look, I'll give it some thought. Maybe. But don't expect things to just click back to the way they were before. Just... Can you tell Aisha to call me back?" She hung up before Miguel could say anything. At least it was a start. Walking back to the changing room, Miguel had seen Hawk had come sometime during his talk with Sam, and now the three closest Cobra's to the king of the quiver were deciding on the names of two newbies.

"What do you think? Shit-head One and Shit-head Two?" Eli asked turning towards Alisha for conformation, his chin being held in his hands as if actually thinking for once, something that seemed to have escaped Hawk later on in the summer.

* * *

**So ya boi did what we call a pro big dumb move and forgot to save after completing this chapter. As a result, I've had to go back and rewrite everything I could remember and because of that, the most likely thing is that the quality may or may not be worse than it was before. I am big dumb. My B.**

* * *

"I was thinking more Mary-Kate and Ass-hat." Aisha responded, making the three laugh. Miguel could see the uncomfortable shift in weight of the two newbies before the larger of the two took a tiny step forward. _"Were we really this bad? After winning a single All-Valley?'_

"Well, I'm Chri-" "Did I say you can speak?" Hawk cut him off, the two taking a step back in response. Having seen this for a second time, Miguel had seen enough and simply walked up to the two new students, patting the brave one on the arm.

"Guys, look, They're just messing with you. Don't take it too personally. I'm Miguel by the way." Miggy stuck his hand out to both boys and shook them, a smile on his face. He gave his friends a soft glare, a bit annoyed at their antics and then began to walk the two newbs through what was to be expected of them in this dojo. A few more of the older students listened in on Miguel's pep-talk, inputting things that Sensei Lawrence doesn't tolerate or finds extremely funny.

Miguel was midway through another explanation before he heard the door to the dojo open. _'Weird. I could have sworn everyone was here.'_ It was at that exact moment that Miguel simultaneously remembered and saw John Kreese walk through the door to the Cobra Kai Dojo.

A chill ran up his spine as he watched the older man survey the group of kids in front of him, his face showing indifference while his eyes showed disappointment. Miguel could have sworn Kreese held his gaze for a few seconds before continuing to walk around the dojo, stopping by a group of three new kids.

"Jesus_ Christ_." The disgust was clearly on full display now. Kreese inspected the kids for no longer than three seconds before turning towards Johnny's office. The students were now all watching Kreese as Miguel stopped in front of him. Miguel didn't feel as confident as he looked but as the leader, he stepped up to face the older man.

"Can I help you, Sir?" Miguel asked with more venom in his voice than he would have liked. Kreese raised his eyebrow slightly, a cruel satisfaction filling his eyes. He looked Miguel up and down, clearly impressed with what he saw. "Not at all, young man." Kreese paused, lifting a finger. "But maybe I can help you."

Miguel opened his mouth to respond. "Hey." Both Miguel and Kreese turned to see Johnny coming out of his office. Kreese, finally seeing who he was here for, took this opportunity to step past Miguel, coming face to face with Johnny.

"Kreese, you come with me. Mr. Diaz, get them warmed up." Miguel didn't miss the subtle nod Johnny sent him, which only served to slightly calm the boy down. Dealing with Kreese was always tense and never easy.

* * *

"What the hell are you doing here? I called the deal off!" Johnny started before the door was fully closed. He rounded on Kreese who only wore a mask of indifference. The man looked around the room, picking at random items around the room before turning to face Johnny.

"Indeed, you did, Mr. Lawrence. But you need me, almost as much as those soldiers out there need me. God knows those twigs in the back need as much help as they can get." Kreese stared out at the students, seeing how the younger kids in the back would make feeble attempts at forward strikes.

"Kids." Johnny corrected, regaining Kreese's attention. "They're not soldiers, they're kids. They're here to learn how to defend themselves, and how to be badass. Nothing more, nothing less. We don't need your help, Kreese." Johnny stared down his old sensei, the older man looking only the slightest bit disappointed.

"You've grown soft Johnny. But," he straightened a pen on the desk, "that's something we can work on. Whether or not you need my help isn't up for debate, Mr. Lawrence. It's only a matter of when. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon. Remember, Cobra brumate until the time is right. I've chosen now to be the right time to strike. When will you?" With that Kreese walked out of the office, taking one last look at the group of Cobra in front of him, before making his departure.

Johnny waited until the door to the dojo closed before emerging from his office. His students looked at him with worry as he made his way to the front. Miguel had just finished the warm-ups and stood back in line to allow his Sensei to stand in the front.

"Alright. Now that that's over with, let's get to work." He scanned the rows as he usually did. "You're here to become badass! For now, you're a bunch of pansy bitches who don't know anything. A bunch of losers, who want to be something they're not. But, for those of you who aren't afraid to rumble with the real king of the jungle, you will become badass!"


	5. Cement? das conk creet baybee

**Writing long chapters is annoying.**

**I own nothing, please don't sue me. I'm a broke bitch.**

**Also, in case not many of you noticed, I haven't really done much of anything in relation to Daniel, Robby, or basically anything outside of Miguel. The reason being is because of the fact that Miguel is the anomaly in this timeline. He's changing a few things here and there, resulting in slightly different scenes. The reason why I'm not changing anything in the other half of the storyline is because Miguel has little to nothing of note to do with that side. Sure he is (partially) a driving force for Robby to become better, but if you look closely Miguel really doesn't have much to do with anything that happens to Robby in season 2 until the latter half of the season. Miguel is the center of the Cobra Kai storyline while Robby and Sam are the centers for the Miyagi-Do half. As a result, anything Miguel would affect directly, such as the interactions with Sam, are shown but everything outside of that, like when she's caught by Robby talking on the phone to Miguel, is played out in much the same fashion.**

**TLDR: I'm writing from a 3rd person POV on Miguel's side of the story. Not really intent on writing scenes for both storylines.**

* * *

As much as Hawk was looking forward to sleeping in after the class from hell yesterday, he was also looking forward to the special training Sensei was talking about. After the strange man had left the dojo, Sensei seemed a little on edge. It didn't help that Miguel already seemed in on whatever was going on, but Hawk knew better than to ask Sensei about it and Miguel wouldn't disclose any info.

_"What a drag,"_ Hawk said more to himself than anything. He was looking in his bathroom mirror, styling his mohawk for the day. After the night he had with Moon, you could say he was more than a little tired and his 'hawk was more than a little messed up. He leaned back a bit to stare into his room. His bathroom door was slightly open and from the light, he could see the slender tanned back of his girlfriend. A wicked smile plastered itself onto his face before he turned back to his reflection. Gone was Eli Moskowitz, the loser with the weird lip that let everyone he ever knew step all over him. The crybaby who would let his tears fall at the slightest tease. The coward who could never stand up for himself. The _freak_.

_'Demitri never stepped over us.'_ A tiny voice in his head said. Hawk glared harder into the mirror. Eli was no more. Demitri was just warming up to the idea. Hawk would pull him in eventually.

_"Demitri was always there for us.' _Shut up. Hawk occupied his thoughts with the fading blue his tips were showing and was thinking about changing the color soon. He made his way out of the bathroom before grabbing a random sweater and pulling it on. As he was walking out of the room he gave Moon's ass one last slap for the road and left his house. He sent Miguel a message to let him know he was on his way.

* * *

Miguel sat outside of his apartment with tiredness clearly evident in his eyes. Last time around Sensei had left him at home and had made him walk to the construction site. This time, the man had sent a message to wake Miguel and was just about ready to leave his apartment. The student waited patiently for his Sensei and was trying to get a few more minutes of sleep before he heard the door open. He quickly got to his feet, awake and ready, until he saw Johnny walk out with a cooler and a huge grocery bag.

"Help me with these, Diaz." Miguel silently obeyed and helped put the items in the car. It wasn't until a few minutes of riding silently that Miguel outwardly asked his question.

"What's all that for?" Johnny gave him a side glance, then looked back outside the window, noticing a hot babe walking by. "Don't worry about it, kid. You'll know eventually." Miguel could only shake his head, giving the hot babe a glance, and stayed silent for the rest of the ride. He got a message from Eli telling him the Hawk has left his nest. Despite everything, Eli was still a huge nerd. All the bird puns attested to that fact.

* * *

It wasn't until the cement truck rumbled into the lot that Miguel looked at Johnny. Sure, the kid hadn't gone into specifics over _how_ they had been trained, but the parallels were a bit unnerving. Hawk looked at him with bewilderment in his eyes.

"There's no way we're doing what I think we're doing." Aisha turned to the two boys. Miguel could only sigh in defeat while Hawk continued to look at the truck.

"He's joking, right? Right?" Miguel could only shake his head. How the man had come to this conclusion twice, he would never know. The fact that they were even doing this a second time was enough to make Miguel's muscles give a hollow throb as his mind remembered the pain of the exercise. The fact that Kreese wasn't here made the situation a bit better but fucking hell Sensei, what the fuck?

"Alright. Everybody, listen up." Johnny called out to his sweating students. They all looked to him, their eyes occasionally glancing at the rig behind their teacher. "So, you guys won an All-Valley. Congrats! Now, the real work begins! Yesterday was just a test to see who could handle the training. Those who couldn't arent here right now. Those who couldn't be bothered to become badass don't feel like putting in the work. As a result, we have only the bravest of the brave, and I congratulate you for it. But, as stated before, the real training starts now. We have eleven and a half months until the next All-Valley Tournament, and I plan to make each and every one of you ready to take that stage by storm. Just 'cause you won a single tournament doesn't give you the right to goof off. In reality, it doesn't mean squat. Having won a single match does not mean anything. A true champion never stops training. We are here to become badass, and we'll be doing so in the most badass way possible." He then thumped the barrel, a smile across his face.

"Keep moving forward, or you'll get stuck exactly where you are. Kinda like the cement in this truck. If that drum doesn't start turning, the cement inside will harden and get stuck. Is that what you want to happen to you?" He stopped in front of Aisha, subtly reminding her of her anger in the quarterfinals.

"No Sensei!" The group yelled out. He scanned his students with an approving smile, they were already badass in their own rights but Johnny wasn't about to tell them that.

"Good. In that case," he lowered the ladder and pointed up. "then climb up, get inside, and make it spin. I'll even turn the thing on for the first few minutes, let you get your footing before making you do all the work." The kids were looking around in bewilderment, muttering to each other and voicing their complaints.

"Sensei, whatever we did, we're sorry," Aisha spoke up, looking between Johnny and the rig. A lot of the kids nodded along with her statement, clearly intimidated by the 'training' this man was trying to put them through.

Miguel wordlessly walked up to the ladder and began climbing, creating a hush as everyone wordlessly watched him get up the ladder and look into the rig. It wasn't filled as much as it was last time, thankfully, but it was still enough to cause more than a few cramps for the next few days.

"Woah, dude. Isn't this a bit much? Don't you think this is just a little crazy?" Hawk spoke from the center of the group. Miguel pulled his head back out to look at the group.

"You'll get used to it. The fumes aren't really a problem, besides I'm used to it by now. I wasn't kidding when I said he tied my hands up and shoved me into a pool in order to teach me how to kick." With that Miguel slid into the drum, a noise of disgust coming out as he felt the cold squishy cement touch his legs and get into his shoes and socks. The rest of the students stared at the spot where Miguel disappeared. Johnny snapped them out of it by grabbing the ladder and hitting it against the side of the truck.

"Well? Can't only have Mr. Diaz in there, can we? What happened to that Cobra Kai companionship?" He looked at everyone individually, hoping someone would step up, until he sighed.

"Little dude," Johnny called out to Bert, "I know you have asthma, so I'm leaving you in charge of the drum. Set the speed to as low as it'll go and turn it on when I tell you to." With that, Johnny tossed Bert his keys and began to climb up into the rig, astonishing everyone else.

"I'll expect at least 3 more of you to come help out. The rest of you keep stirring the cement. We're taking turns." With that, he also slipped in.

"What about me? I have asthma too, in case you forgot." Miguel quipped as Johnny made his way towards the other end, stopping next to his student.

"Can it Diaz, or you'll end up in the cement mix you're standing in." Miguel laughed, already knowing that the cement was going to get everywhere anyway. Too bad for Johnny, Miguel had come prepared this time and had shaved his body hair just in case something like this happened again. Having to rip off a few chunks of concrete stuck to your armpit hairs is _not _a fun experience to have, no matter how small the pieces are. Too bad a simple wash down with a hose isn't enough to wash everything off.

* * *

To say everyone was exhausted would be a very big understatement. Hawk was covered from toe to hair tip in concrete and was contemplating strangling the life out of Bert and Miguel for having poured cement mix all over him. The training, while excessive, was also a good team-building exercise, and Hawk couldn't say he wasn't having fun yelling inside the drum while also laughing at the next group of kids who had to move the cement, shouting encouragement and praise once they survived.

He wasn't as enthusiastic when Johnny made him pair off with a mixed group of the weaker students, but they lived. It was because Bert had taken a fall in the mixture midway through, partially because Hawk had tripped the little guy, that he and Miguel dumped more cement on Eli during his next break.

To everyone's surprise, including the 3 oldest students, Johnny had made sandwiches for everyone and had brought a few cases of water bottles, albeit the tiny ones. He brushed it off as having had nowhere to stash them in his home while he struggled to come up with a reason for the sandwiches. Aisha and a few others continued to tease him, ending in them having to mix another wheelbarrow full of cement while the rest of the students laughed. They even ended up getting into a cement fight, for which Johnny yelled at them before getting pelted with balls of cement courtesy of Hawk and Miguel.

Now they all lay on the floor too exhausted to stand, having Sensei spray them down with a hose.

"If it gets in your eyes or nose, that's on you." He warned them after they refused to get up. While he sprayed them down he was smiling, still thinking about the types of adults they would turn out to be.

"I'm proud of you. All of you." He began after having them all sit up. He began to spray their fronts, spraying them in the face as he went along. "I'm sure anyone would be. You kept moving forward and you didn't get stuck. Those of you who fell got back up and persisted, you prevailed, you lived and you learned. Those of you who kicked someone else down to keep yourself up, you got what you deserved." He looked at Hawk and shot a quick spray his way.

"But above all, each of you continued to strive for better. You should all be proud of yourselves. I bet even your parents would be proud if you told them what we did here today, which you won't. I already had one person bitch at me more mistreating their poor baby; I don't need another. You all pushed forward like champions. Never stopping. Never quitting. Never satisfied. Never giving up. And if you keep going just as you do now, keep pushing and keep moving forward, you're going places you never even dreamed of." Johnny looked at each of his students, stopping at Hawk, Miguel, and Aisha. He gave them a nod, a scowl fighting to stay put on his face as the small smile broke through.

"Now, make sure you get yourselves home safe and jump in the shower. I don't need your parents asking questions as to why you came home covered in cement." He sprayed their backs one last time as they began to walk away, tired, hungry, and itchy.

* * *

Carmen was just as mad as she was last time if Miguel's memory served correctly. She immediately stormed over to Sensei's house and started screaming at him in Spanish, forgetting the man spoke broken Spanish at best and gringo at worst. His Yaya could only laugh after having seen Johnny and Miggy walk through the courtyard, having been dusting the carpet, and laughed some more as Johnny and Miguel sat at the dinner table silently eating under the scrutinizing gaze of his Mother.

"The food is delicious, as always, Rosa." Johnny managed out, looking everywhere in the room except for the angry woman sitting directly in front of him. Rosa smiled and thanked him, lightly kicking her daughter under the table. Carmen switched her gaze immediately, her mother raised an eyebrow.

Miguel, feeling at least slightly responsible, tried taking the heat off of Sensei, to which the older man tried to take it back. This only served to make Carmen angrier and the two quickly went back to eating silently.

On the way back across the yard, both teacher and student were silent. Johnny holding a few large tupperware containers full of food.

"I'm sorry about my mom, she can be really protective of me sometimes." Johnny only held up his hand, digging into his pocket for his keys.

"Nah, don't worry about it, Kid. She loves you and you know it. She's just worried you'll get hurt at some point. Maybe to the point of no return." Miguel stood silent, thinking back to his last memory before he woke up at the beginning of the summer. Having thought about it, Miguel had decided that what he experienced was too real to be thought of as a dream. The pain was too real and too vivid to be anything but reality. Johnny, realizing what he'd said, began to apologize, until Miguel shrugged it off.

"You didn't mean it. Don't worry about it." He clenched his fists and let them drop to his side. "It won't come to that again. I won't let it." Johnny looked at Miguel, remembering the kid was older than what he looked and nodded solemnly. They entered the apartment and started talking about lighter topics. School, plans for the future, babes. Miguel was just getting ready to go home when there was a knock on the door.

"I was just leaving, Mom. Don't-" Miguel stopped as he opened the door. There stood Daniel LaRusso, looking both out of place and right at home at the same time. He was standing a bit ways away from the door, a nervous air surrounding him.

"- worry... Uh, Sensei. Mr. LaRusso is here to see you." Miguel quickly got out of the way as Daniel stood a bit straighter, eyeing Miguel up and down.

"If now's not a great time, I could come back in the morning," Daniel said, still trying to intimidate Miguel. The boy was at least decent enough to have a guilty look on his face. Johnny made his way up to the door, moving Miguel out of the way gently.

"Nah, now's about as good a time as any. What do you want, LaRusso?" Daniel, for all he was worth, sighed and met Johnny's gaze.

"It's about Robby."

* * *

Miguel was in a very uncomfortable position. Having learned of Robby's homelife put a spin on Miguel's perception of his rival. Not only that, but the fact that Sam's dad kept glaring at him from time to time wasn't helping the situation. When Daniel did eventually leave, having gotten Sensei's permission, Miguel asked why he was kept around when he could have easily left.

"Easy. Damage control. You don't want to be in more shit than you already are with LaRusso, you keep me from knocking his teeth out, and it keeps him from hitting me since it'd be 2 on 1. With you here, there's less of a chance of a fight breaking out. That and you already know about my relationship with Robby. I haven't exactly been a good father, and the kid hates my guts because of all the shit his mom's put in his head. Me not being there didn't help much either." Johnny pulled a banquet out of his fridge and tossed Miguel a water bottle.

"Let's go for a drive. We'll pick up the other two."


	6. Judgement

**I've had most of this chapter ready since the last one came out, I've just been wanting to have at least 1 chapter done before I post another, that way I stay ahead of the story and can flesh out some ideas before I publish them. See how much I like them before sending them out to the sharks. Either way, here you are.**

* * *

Miguel sighed, running a hand through his hair. Hawk was beginning to falter and it was starting to get annoying. Not only had Daniel LaRusso made the Miyagi-Do commercial again but once Hawk had found out Robby was Johnny's son, in typical Hawk fashion, he was making a huge deal out of something so insignificant.

"I just don't understand why he wouldn't tell us sooner. I mean, come on. 'Show no mercy' is one of the lessons he taught us. Yeah, right." Hawk straightened out onto the floor. "Show no mercy unless it's his son. Then we gotta be pussies. It explains why he was giving us so much shit for beating Keene's ass at the tournament." Aisha wasn't too happy about it either. Johnny had taken the three of them for a ride and had explained everything. The other two, seeing Miguel's calm exterior, had followed suit in not really reacting much and allowing their Sensei to get what he needed to off his chest. When he was done, Miguel could tell both of his friends were shocked and more than a little hurt at the fact that their Sensei had kept that little fact a secret until now.

"I'm sure it wasn't all about that, Hawk." Aisha tried to defend. "Look, maybe it was just something that Sensei couldn't bring up easily. You saw how pained he looked just trying to tell us. The man had to pull over just to avoid crashing into someone." Miguel met Hawk's gaze and shook his head slightly.

"He didn't want us to know because then we would have assumed he wanted us to go easy on Robby. Pile onto that the fact that we injured Robby and exploited that injury to win and it would make it seem like he didn't tell us because then we would react like you are now, Hawk. Just take it easy these next few days. Relax, try to cool down a bit. All this will blow over soon." Miguel patted his friend on the stomach before getting up.

"Come on, Class is about to start."

* * *

Johnny was finishing locking up the shop when homeless lady Lynn spoke to him talking about some random shit. Johnny didn't pay her much attention except when she made the remark of taking her to his place.

"Never gonna happen." Johnny rebutted with a smile on his face. He was walking backward towards his car when he saw a man standing at the edge of the strip mall, cigar in hand. Johnny knew without a doubt who this man was and stopped by his car only long enough to throw his bag in.

"What the hell are you doing here, Kreese?"

The older man took a drag before speaking.

"I gotta tell ya. It doesn't look good. LaRusso training your son like his own." He blew out the smoke before giving Johnny one of his condescending smirks. "Not quite sure how you put up with that." Johnny crossed his arms, waiting for the man to continue.

"You should be training that boy. He's your flesh and blood, after all." He turned fully towards Johnny, tapping the ash off of the end of his bud. "Hell, I know he'd make at least half as good a student as his father. Training with a pansy like LaRusso in that Ol' Bastards form, it sickens me. Give me a week with that kid and-"

"Like hell, that'd happen." Johnny interrupted. "Listen, old man. Robby wants nothing to do with me, and it's not like LaRusso would let you even get close to my kid. It's never gonna happen, alright?"

Kreese chuckled. "Never say never, Mr. Lawrence. Here we stand in front of Cobra Kai dojo," he said gesturing to the building, "something I never thought I'd see again in my life. It took my best student to remind me that anything is possible." Kreese stared up at the yellow Cobra. He took one last drag of the rest of his cigar before dropping the small leftover onto the floor and grinding it to dust.

"My offer still stands, Johnny. Think very carefully about the future of the rest of your students. You might have that Mexican now, but what happens if LaRusso sinks his mitts into him? Or the mohawk?" Kreese shrugged before beginning to walk away. "I'll be waiting for your call Mr. Lawrence. I hope to hear from you soon."

And just like that, he was gone. Johnny sat in his car for a long while, leaving only after Lynn had begun to harass him. On his way home, Johnny attempted to steel his resolve. He and Miguel had to have a very long discussion.

* * *

Miguel could only stare into the eyes of his mentor. Again the two sat inside Sal's, munching away at some burgers - or, at least, Johnny was. Miguel had stopped eating after Johnny had revealed his plan to accept Kreese as a helper for the dojo. Both stared into the eyes of the other, neither looking away.

"Sensei I... I just don't think its a good idea. I already told you what's going to happen. If you let Kreese back in, there's no guarantee that the same things won't happen again. I don't like the idea."

"It won't happen, Diaz. You've been there before and I'm not gonna make you go through it again. You'll be there to help me and tell me if I'm slipping up or if you see anything shady. I just think it'd be beneficial to the dojo if there were two sensei's, ya know? It'd be easier to show you more advanced moves without having to worry about any lawsuits. I know you don't like the idea. I haven't exactly warmed up to the idea myself yet, but it would help the students... _All _the students." Miguel reluctantly nodded.

"If it's what you want, Sensei, then there's not much I can do to change your mind. I- I'll help you manage, keep Kreese at a distance, but if worse comes to worst I'll take matters into my own hands. I was put here to change what's going to happen, not just to sit around and let it happen again. Or- at least- I'd like to think so."

Johnny relaxed a bit, the worst part of the conversation over. He glanced over at the hospital. He failed Robby. He wouldn't fail Miguel.

Miguel, on the other hand, was thinking up ways to prevent Kreese's corruption on the dojo. He couldn't think of many ways he would try to stop it without being obvious, or without outright displaying his distaste for the older man. The more he thought about trying to stop the man, the more agitated he got.

"You see that building over there?" Sensei broke the silence with that familiar line. Miguel, understanding the importance, continued it much in the same way they had last time. Sensei, once more, spilling his heart out for Miguel to see. And much like last time, Miguel's respect for the man across from him swelled.

"It's one of the most painful things in my life. But one of the best things has been teaching you. Listen, Miguel." Johnny glanced at the hospital once more and took a breath to calm himself. "I want you to know, no matter what happens, I promise... I'll always be on your side, and I'll always have your best interests at heart. And while I know right now, despite going against your advice and against your warnings with the whole Kreese thing, I still have your best interests in mind. It's just that right now, I feel as if it's the right call to make. All I ask is that you trust me. Just like you did during our training, and just like you have been doing ever since. Do you trust me, Miguel?"

Miggy smiled, unable to hold in the emotion. "Of course I do Sensei. Thank you. For everything."

The two sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, until Miguel remembered Aisha was going to send a text about Miyagi-Do doing a demonstration at Valley Fest. Just as he was reaching for his phone, it went off, prompting Sensei to ask what was up.

"It's from Aisha... Remember that Valley Fest demo I told you about?"

* * *

"So we have to sit through this crap?" Johnny looked to Miguel as LaRusso had stepped into the back to probably put away the stupid staff that doesn't do jack. It was all for show anyway. Miguel gave a half-shrug as Daniel walked back in with a cart that held 5 solid plates of ice. The crowd had their interests peaked by the silence that came from the members of Miyagi-Do, Daniel psyching himself up to try and accomplish a task that he'd done nearly 30 years prior.

Johnny wasn't really moved by seeing his rival break through all 5, though he did notice the grimace LaRusso had on his face and the way he clutched his wrist behind his back when the three had taken a bow.

Daniel had gotten lucky and there was no other way of looking at it.

As the crowd clapped and was beginning to disperse, Kreese took this as his time to strike and had created noise off of the speakers to draw the attention to the main stage. He gave Miguel the signal and, much like the previous time, the Cobra's slid through the crowd and onto the stage.

As the happenings, well, happened, Miguel thought about how Sam would feel about the Cobra's stealing the spotlight from her Dad. Let it be known, however, that Miguel had an exceptionally tough time trying to convince Sensei to allow Miyagi-Do to finish their own showing. This time around there was not as much malicious intent as the last, though Miguel did still harbor ill feelings towards Robby, even if he tried to convince others, and himself, otherwise.

Miguel finished the, somewhat, staged rumble as the sole survivor once more, spotting Stingray among the many onlookers. A small smile crossed his face upon seeing someone who he had come to respect in another time. He walked back towards the side stage to allow Hawk and Aisha their own time to shine and was mulling over what next to do when he remembered something from a past-turned-future.

_"You say you saw me twice before actually meeting me but you haven't mentioned the second. Then again, I am assuming the first was at the All-Valley." Miguel said as he lay on the mulched playground floor. He had a certain wood chip the was starting to stab into his mid-back but since Tory was laying on him at the moment, he didn't dare move._

Miguel absentmindedly rubbed the spot that the wood had stabbed.

_"Why are you asking about that now? Hoping to boost your ego by how _enraptured _I was?" Tory teased back as she tilted her head upwards to look at our favorite non-Mexican. Miguel just smiled up to the sky, not missing the way she used enraptured nor the emphasis on the word._

_They waited a few moments before Tory got up from his chest, straddling him. The mulch bit dug further into his back as she used his torso as leverage, but he played it off by appearing to get comfortable since she was finally off. She smiled slyly in only a way that she knew how and sighed._

_"It was actually at Valley Fest, right as you were getting on stage." Looking up at the sky as if it held her memories for her.  
_

Miguel's eyes widened a little.

_"And when you won that obviously scripted rumble." She giggled a little. She looked into his eyes now._

Miguel's head whipped to the side as if Hawk's kick had hit him instead of the board held by Demitri.

_"And when you were just standing there, cheering on your friends. The amount of pride you had when Sensei broke the concrete blocks." She paused as if she was hoping her next lines weren't as cheesy as they sounded in her head._

She _had_ to be here, but where?

_"But the thing that sold me, for the second time, was when our eyes met, if only for the smallest of moments. I knew then and there that I had to do what it took for you to see me." She could barely hold the blush that appeared on her pale complexion and Miguel had started laughing._

_"You're so cheezy it's adorable."_

And just as Sensei had brought his fist through the blocks, Miguel found exactly who he had been looking for. Tory was only watching him and, though Miguel knew he wouldn't be able to pursue her right now, he looked back into her eyes until he was broken out of his trance by Hawk and Aisha pulling him into the line up next to Sensei.

"We did it Sensei!" Hawk said, reveling in the awesomeness he embodied and the cheers of the crowd. Johnny gave each of the three a sideways look before proudly correcting Hawk.

"No, Hawk. _We_ did it."

And though Miguel was happy for his friends, he couldn't help the longing he felt when he noticed that Tory was gone. Though, he knew, not for long. And the blush he saw on her face would be great to have as weaponry for later teasing, he mused.


	7. Forthright

Demetri was conflicted. After some deliberation the nerd had finally gathered up the courage to ask Miguel if it would be okay for him to, hypothetically, ask if it would be cool if Miguel could ask his Sensei for permission to allow Demetri back into the dojo but also maybe, just slightly, not pound him into a pulp by forcing him to fight with his gangly noodle arms against clearly bloodthirsty heathens who had nothing better to do than to whirl at each other day in and day out. Not that Demetri was calling Johnny a heathen or anything like that...

Taking a breath, Demetri continued to survey the comic book store for anything that would catch his fancy. Perusing the isles always gave him a feeling of security. This was his happy place free of violence that wasn't contained within the strips and boxes on and in a comic book, or that wasn't thought of by the few people using their imaginations to conjure completely different worlds based off their character sheets and the will of the Dungeon Master or those placing and shuffling decks of cards while complaining how rigged a certain deck was. Free from any form of femininity and was his holy sanctuary.

He picked up a set of dice and a metal figurine that had caught his attention and thought he may be able to convince Miguel to at least try out D&D. The game was vast and endless. Truly it was the work of gods and there would be no other game in existence that would come close to its perfection. A world where the possibilities were limited only by the imagination and-

"Next!" A voice snapped Demetri from his monologue. He placed his items on the counter, reaching for his wallet, and scanned the comics within the glass display. "There doesn't seem to be anything new, huh, Hank? Shame, really. You'd think with the new movie there'd at least be-" Demetri stopped talking as he looked up expecting to see Hank, the owner of the comic book store and Demetri's fifth favorite person in the world. Instead, he was greeted with a sight of a blonde tapping her finger on the counter as she waited for Demetri to pay up.

Demetri's brain, unfortunately for the both of them, was currently running a mile a minute with thoughts of the apocalypse as a _female_ had defiled his sanctuary. There was also the fact that Demetri rarely spoke to girls, so his short-circuiting wasn't very surprising. Taking a moment to readjust himself, Demetri could only respond with a very amusing "uhhh..."

The girl was slightly annoyed at the behavior but since having started working in the store only recently she's grown used to the nerds responding in such a way. With a small huff to blow a strand of hair out of her face, she adjusted her studded bracelet before asking once more "will that be all?"

Mitri, in his still fried brain, could only nod dumbly and without another word paid and left. It was only after taking a seat at the food court, having run on autopilot for a solid half-hour, that he finally came to his senses and promptly put his face in his hands, groaning.

"I'm such an idiot."

* * *

Tory was not having the best week. After valley fest, she had gone home with a content little brother only to find their apartment without electricity. It was commonplace at this point in their lives and while she was still only a high schooler, her little brother was only 8 so he really didn't understand much and thought that having the candles on was for fun and didn't really question much.

Tory sometimes envied the view her little brother had in life. Ignorance certainly was bliss.

But, because of the sudden realization that more money was needed, Tory sat down with her mother the next morning and they came to an agreement that Tory could find a job or two for the summer. At least until they could have a little breathing room. Her brother would stay with his friends while she worked, since they all lived in the same apartment complex, and the mother of the kid didn't ask for anything in return other than a helping hand once in a while.

And so, Tory went around the valley to see if anyone would hire a minor with at least somewhat decent pay and came up pretty much empty. Everywhere she went she could almost feel the neckbeards undressing her and not listening to a single word she said. The fact that she had brought her brother along on this "adventure," as he put it, was starting to wear on Tory as they finally sat down in the food court of the mall, having bought her brother some food. He had insisted on getting some chicken nuggets so Tory bought a 20 piece so that she could steal a few to stave off her own hunger.

'_Gotta save where it counts_.' She thought to herself begrudgingly. Had she known they'd need money, she wouldn't have indulged so much at valley fest. It was in her musing and her brother's indication that she saw the faithful sign she had seen over 10 times that day but she thought she might as well give it another try before calling it quits for the day.

"Come on, shrimp. We're going to the comic book store." The little man didn't have to be told twice before he shoved his mouth full of the remaining 5 nuggets and almost choked as he ran towards his favorite store in the mall, leaving his sister to lay behind as she hurriedly cleaned up their table.

* * *

"So, as much as I'd love to pay you what you're asking, I can only offer you that amount for the summer as a seasonal position. If you'd like to stick around for longer than I'd have to fire you, on paper, and 'rehire' you at a lower pay rate after. But I really could use the extra set of hands. Having a girl man the register would also boost up the sales but I also wouldn't want anyone harassing you either." Hank, a man in his early thirties with kind eyes and a serious face, explained to Tory. She was currently on the fence on deciding if she really did want this job but she couldn't see anything overly negative to say otherwise. Hank was respectful and even threw in giving her a pick of some of the leftover items that didn't sell as well as he had hoped after seeing how fascinated her brother was with literally everything in the store. The pay was also a lot better than anything she would be getting anywhere else and, if she worked enough hours, she'd be able to save more than enough money for a rainy day.

And thus here she was currently sitting behind a counter and waiting on the next man-child to appear and short-circuit before leaving the store in a hurry. At least, those were the good ones. A few came back after having rebooted their systems and, as Hank had predicted, the sales were booming. Even the little dumb keychains and gum packets were selling like hotcakes, Tory had already had to refill the gum containers six times since her shift had started two hours ago, and four of them had been in the last half hour.

Her job wasn't hard, per se, but when you have someone you're interested in at the front of your mind and people continue to not take your hints it gets frustrating. The worst case was a dude who looked like he had graduated 10 years ago but still hit on high school girls cuz he peaked early in his life. He'd been there every day since Tory had started and would stand behind her while she stocked some of the shelves with merch. It took Hank literally throwing him out in his ass for him to stop coming but that only held him off for a day or two. He'd come in at least twice today offering her flowers that he literally pulled from the flowerbed in the center of the mall near the fountain and some chocolates that he'd definitely stolen from some unsuspecting store. It was annoying, to say the least. She'd wanted to practice her grappling skills to scrape off a little rust and blow off some steam but Hank had been explicit in his instructions and under very few circumstances was Tory allowed to use force against a customer.

"For legal purposes." He'd say. He later popped back in to add "If it were up to me, though, I'd let you whoop their asses. Rough 'em up a bit just so show them you're not fucking around, pardon my French." This brought a smile to Tory's features. Hank was a good guy. It's a wonder how he's still single but she assumed working full time in his own comic book store might have had its drawbacks.

Taking a glance at the clock on the wall Tory saw that she still had a good hour and a half before she was allowed to go home. Hank had said that she didn't need to do much as he'd usually taken care of most of the shelving. She looked around the store to see if there were any customers aside from those playing in the back before taking a seat and letting her mind wander. After getting her first paycheck she'd be able to handle this month's electric bill and groceries alone.

It wasn't until a certain bowl-cut boy who was friends with Miguel Diaz walked in that Tory realized she'd been so busy that week she hadn't thought about Miguel even once. When the lanky dude brought his purchases up to the register Tory was debating on whether or not ask about Miguel but figured it'd be too risky and weird if some random stranger asks you about one of your friends despite neither of you meeting said stranger. Stalker's behavior was not attractive and if Miguel found out then it'd most likely ruin her chances.

When Demetri, Hank had come out as the boy was running away, was out of sight and the place was free of customers Tory took the chance to think back to the king cobra. She whipped out the calculator to crunch some numbers and found that if she worked in her spare time, she'd be set for at least a few weeks. Double shift weekends would also make up for any money lost.

* * *

The day was quickly approaching that Miguel would have to make a decision. To say that this decision was made from the very beginning would have been difficult to predict but it was for the better. The fact that he had always had two different choices and one had cascaded into a whirlwind of emotions and pain was only the tip of the iceberg. With a deep breath and a step forward, Miguel finalized his choice.

"I'll take the heart attack cheeseburger, please. Extra pickles and onion." The man at the front nodded turning back to the grill. The gang was currently at a food truck, something that Miguel had admitted was very unhealthy but God did it taste amazing. He'd still remembered when they first dragged him here back in their early days, Demetri and Hawk, then Eli, couldn't believe their ears when Miggy told them he'd never been to one. An excited smile adorned his face as he was served his order. He'd been thinking about this bad boy ever since Sensei started to prepare them for Kreese's teachings. It wasn't anything different or difficult, just more intense and hard on the body. And tougher exercise meant more food.

As he was walking back towards the group, he didn't fail to see the white car pulling into the parking lot. The smile began to slowly disappear from his face as Miguel looked over to his friends. Aisha was watching him closely and based on the way Hawk was sitting on the edge of his seat, Miguel didn't see his escape being an easy one. Moon, as always, was oblivious to all those happenings as she shouted with glee upon seeing Sam getting out of her car. Sam was ecstatic to see her friend after having a really tough day of having to be the peacekeeper of her family. Her smile, much like Miguel's, slowly faded into embarrassment and a bit of awkwardness upon seeing Miguel slowly walk into her view.

Oh, boy, was this gonna get awkward.

* * *

Miguel sat quietly at the table. While everyone else was trying to get the ex-couple to talk, Sam had the decency to look guilty and Miguel simply ate in silence. Having enough of this, Aisha suggested the group get some ice cream from the shop around the corner, taking Hawk and Moon with her. Sam and Miguel wanted to protest but with a quick "It'll only take a few minutes and we need someone to watch the table." The three were gone.

Miguel could feel the tension growing in the air with each passing second. The longer he sat there chewing the less and less appealing his burger became. It only got worse when the two had made eye contact for less than a second and immediately looked away from each other.

Finally giving in, Sam got up and sat across from him. Miguel could make out her form sitting across from him but kept his eyes glued to his burger. When he did look up, though, Sam took that chance to whisper out "Hey."

"Hey." Miguel's reply was barely louder than her own. They just looked at each other before looking away again. The last time they had spoken face to face was back at the tournament. He hadn't even gotten a chance to talk to her on the first day of school because of what had happened, and the time before that was when she kissed him at Moon's party, which he was the only one who could remember that happening. Miguel sat thinking about what to say when Sam beat him to the punch.

"Miguel, I... This is a lot more awkward than I thought it was gonna be. I know you might not want to be in this position, and I _know_ because it's hard for me to sit here and let my mouth run while my brain tries to catch up but what I'm trying to say is," taking a gasp of air, Sam paused. "I guess, I'm sorry for having acted the way I did."

'_So much for strike first._' Miguel thought ruefully from his seat. He lowered what was left of his burger and looked at Sam for the first time this summer. He could see all the emotions flash in her eyes. True they hadn't dated for long, but that didn't mean that Miguel didn't pay attention to Sam. He was obsessed with her for the better part of the summer and it wasn't until Tory had walked into his life that he began to think about someone other than Samantha. He still couldn't shake off just how _right_ it felt when Sam had kissed him at the party.

"Look, Sam, it's all in the past. I'm sorry too, for having acted rashly and not thinking about your side of the story. I was drunk and seeing you with someone else just set something off in me that I couldn't control." For some reason, the word 'ironic' crossed Miguel's mind. It wouldn't be until later that night that Miguel made the connection between drunk Sam and himself when he was under the influence.

Getting that out of the way, the two struggled to come up with something to talk about and the three chose this moment to come around the corner. Somewhat convenient if you asked either Sam or Miguel but then again Aisha had that uncanny ability to know the perfect moment to show up. The two occupants at the table didn't see the fist bump Aisha and Hawk shared as they grew closer.

* * *

"I'm a widower." Was the sudden exclamation Johnny Laurence announced to his three favorite students. Each of the three looked at each other before Miguel chimed in.

"Sensei I don't think you know what widower means..." They were currently cleaning up the dojo for an incoming new batch of students as 'punishment' but in reality, Johnny just didn't feel like doing the paperwork and used cleaning as en excuse. And what better way to clean than to make someone else do it. So here they were.

"Yeah, I do." Johnny shot back with total conviction as he sent the cap of his water bottle sailing at Miguel's forehead in retaliation for the Ecuadorian's defiance.

A pause came from the other two, Miguel being distracted by the slight pain. They all looked at Johnny for clarification.

"I totally do. It means that they were so smokin hot that their husbands couldn't handle them. I go for those types cuz they're easier than most" he said laying back into his chair. Aisha rolled her eyes. Hawk laughed a little before correcting the man.

"No, Sensei. A widower is a dude who's wife died..."

Another pause.

"Well, I guess I'm still a widower cuz my ex-wife is dead" Johnny smirked taking a swig from his water bottle. "To me at least."

* * *

**So it occurs to me that due to the move to Netflix, cobra kai suddenly has had its fanbase quadrupled (possibly, don't quote me on that) and that means that I now have an obligation to finish this fanfiction, which sucks ass I'm not gonna lie. But, alas, I give and you've just finished the latest chapter. Honestly don't know where the inspiration for this chapter came from and it just sorta came out last night right before I KO'd. I wrote up to the end of Tory's part last night and the rest was today. That last little scene was something I came up with a while back and couldn't really fit it into the story smoothly so I just stuck it in at the end for shits and giggles. **

**Till next time,**

**Yeet.**

**-Tony**


End file.
